Printing on nonabsorptive surfaces



June 7, 1938. x D w KNAGGQ v 2,119,546 PRINTING ON NONABSORPTIV I Filed Dec. 29, 1953 INVENTOR DoMLDWk Msas BY ATTORNEYS Patented June 7, 1938 um'nao STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PRINTING ON NONABSORPTIVE SURFACES Donald W. Knaggs, City Island, N. Y., assignor to Anigraphic Process, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application December 29, 1933, Serial No. 704,456

5' Claims.

. larly related to printing on a glass container.

At present it is customary in most industries in which bottles are used, to label the bottle either by moulding, such as is done frequently with milk bottles, or by printing a label on paper and affixing this label to the bottle by a suitable adhesive. It is highly desirable for many reasons to be able to print a label directly on the bottle. It is possible in this manner to producea product having a more pleasing appearance, and this also avoids the loss of bottles in those industries where bottles are returned to the manufacturer of the product to be refilled, and is less expensive than repeated re-labeling.

' It has heretofore been necessary in printing on a bottle to bake the bottle with its printed label for many hours at a high or fusing temperature in order to make the printing fuse into the glass.

My invention is of a new means for, and method of, printing on a-bottle which is simple and easy to perform and may be done quickly and economically. and at low temperature. In some forms in which I practice myinvention I use a heating process for a short time but this heating involves only a very small proportion of the heat or time required in baking processes of the prior art.

' I may practice my invention on a perfectly smooth, vitreous surface- It is necessary in practicing my invention to use an ink that is quickdrying, that is hard-setting in order to withstand abrasion, that is alkali-resistant, and whose colors are fast. An ink having these characteristics may be produced by anyone skilled in the art of making ink.

After printing the label on the bottle the ink must be set as in any case where a hard-setting ink is used. This is accomplished by a flash of heat. That is the printed label may simply be passed over a hot flame. Setting the ink thus requires only a few seconds. It is possible in practicing my invention to set the ink without the use of any flame, as it will set in a short time by simply exposing it to the air.

After the ink is set I cover the printed portion v with a varnish. This varnish is a synthetic resin neither may contain any ingredient which will cause the other to disintegrate or change its physical or chemical characteristics.

After varnishing the label I heat the bottle for approximately fifteen to twenty minutes at a temperature of approximately 300 F. This temperature-and time are the maximum that may be necessary for the best results. A good product may be'produced in a somewhat less time. This heating to 300 does not serve to fuse the design into the glass since the fusing temperature of the type of glass used is about 1100". The processmay be said therefore, to be performed. in the" absence of fusing heat. The label which is produced by my process as just described adheres very strongiy to the bottle and has the appearance of being practically a part .of the bottle itself. It may of course be applied in any suitable color or combination c! colors and therefore ma present a very attractive appearance.

In washing bottles it is customary to usean alkali solution of from 2 to 10%, and in some cases to employ stiff. revolving brushes. Since my ink and varnish are both alkali-resistant. and will withstand abrasion and hot water. a bottle which has a label printed thereon in accordance with the process described above will withstand a considerable number of washings without affecting its appearance. Such a process is entirely suitable for any bottle which is not intended to be refilled, such. for example, as a'bottle of per-' fume, catsup, whiskey, etc. It is also suitable. as stated above, for a bottle which may be refilled a number of times and vigorously'washedand sterilized between each two fillings.

In accordance with another method of practicing my invention I first .etch the surface which is to be printed by chemical or'physlcal means, such as hydrofluoric acid or sand blast ing. I then use the same ink as before to print on the etched surface and use the same varnish as before to cover the ink and also to cover the etched surface if desired. The ink and the varnish are set in the same manner as in my previous process. The varnish in this case fills the roughened surface of the bottle where it has been etched and causes the bottle to have the appearance of not having been etched at all.

when I practice the process just described the resulting product is a label which will adhere to the bottle for its life under any circumstances of normal use. That is the bottle may be returned to the manufacturer time after-time, sterilized with a strong alkali solution, and washed with still brushes for extended periods without aflectthe last one.

ing the label in any way. Such a method is, therefore, very advantageous for use with milk bottles and beer bottles, for example, where it is customary for them to be returned over and over for refilling.

It is also possible to produce a product which is suitable commercially for some purposes by following the steps just described, but omitting That is, if the surface is first etched, the ink will adhere sufficiently well for many purposes, but will not withstand the treatment it will withstand if it is also covered with the varnish.

In the drawin Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate bottles to which labels, indicated by the word label, have been applied in accordance with any of the methods described above. The label may in any case appear to be simply a printed legend applied directly to a clear bottle.

Fig. 2 illustrates a label of more complicated design than Fig. 1. In this case a background may be printed on thebottle in one color and the label itself printed in a different color. The circular back ground shown in this figure may, of course, be first etched and then printed in a color desired and the label then printedin a different color. Varnish may then beapplied to the entire surface as before described. My label may, of course, be printedin reverse, in which event the contents of the bottle may supply the color which causes the label itself to 1 stand out.

What is claimed is:

7 surface in the absence of fusing heat for the said surface which comprises etching said surface, printing on said etched surface with a quick-drying hard-setting alkali-resistant ink and covering said printing with a synthetic-resin thermal-setting alkali-resistant varnish.

4. The method of printing on a transparent glass container which comprises the use of a quick-drying hard-setting ink, setting said ink after applying it to the bottle, covering said ink with a synthetic-resin varnish, and then heating said bottle for approximately fifteen minutes at approximately 300 F.

5. The method of printing on a non-transparent glass container which comprises the use of a quick-drying hard-setting ink, setting said ink after applying it to the bottle, covering said ink with a synthetic-resin thermal-setting varnish, and then heating said bottle for approximately fifteen minutes at approximately 300 F.

DONALD W. KNAGGS. 

